THE Regional Trial Court (RTC) of La Trinidad, Benguet Branch 63 convicted former members of the Cooperative Bank of Benguet Inc. (CBB) Board of Directors for violation of Republic Act 7653 or the “New Central Bank Act” and the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas’ (BSP) Manual of Regulations for Banks (MORB).
The BSP in a statement said the RTC of La Trinidad found accused Aurelio G. Lapniten, Miguel P. Luma-ang, Crisaldo P. Badival, Melecio K. Calubandi and Antonio P. Kito guilty beyond reasonable doubt and sentenced them to pay a fine of P80,000 each, without subsidiary imprisonment in case of insolvency.
The criminal cases stemmed from the Directors, Officers, Stockholders and Related Interests (Dosri) loan granted by the accused officers to the CBB Cooperation Foundation Inc. (CBBCFI).
Upon investigation, BSP found that the incorporators and some of the former and current directors and officers of CBBFI are also the former and current directors and officers of CBB.
“The accused, who pleaded guilty, approved a Dosri loan that grossly exceeded the individual ceiling for such loans, in violation of the approval requirements under Section X330 of the MORB, in relation to Section 36 of Republic Act 7653, The New Central Bank Act,” the BSP said.
The central bank ensures that supervised banks and non-bank financial institutions are compliant with existing laws, rules and regulations while maintaining the soundness of the financial system.
It also reiterated its commitment “to protecting public interest through the implementation of good governance practices among its supervised financial institutions.”
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